{{tnr}}'''Rick Scott''' (b. December 1, 1952) is the current [[Republican]] [[Governor of Florida]]. He won a narrow and closely watched contest with Florida's [[Democratic]] CFO, [[Alex Sink]], in the 2010 midterm. Previously, Scott worked as a healthcare executive.

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{{tnr}}'''Rick Scott''' (b. December 1, 1952, in Bloomington, [[Illinois]]) is the current [[Republican]] [[Governor of Florida]]. He was first elected in 2010 on a joint ticket with former [[Lieutenant Governor of Florida|lieutenant governor]] [[Jennifer Carroll]]. Scott won a narrow and closely watched contest with Florida's [[Democratic]] CFO, [[Alex Sink]], in the general election on [[Florida gubernatorial election, 2010|November 2, 2010]].<ref name="bio">[http://www.flgov.com/meet-governor-scott/ ''Florida Governor's office,'' "Meet Governor Scott," accessed September 13, 2012]</ref> He was sworn into office on January 4, 2011 and his term will expire January 6, 2015.

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==Biography==

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Before becoming governor, Scott ran Solantic Corporation, a network of Florida urgent care centers, which he co-founded in 2001. From 1997 to 2001, he owned a controlling share in America's Health Network, a media company later known as Discovery Health. He headed Columbia Hospital Corporation, a conglomeration of 340 hospitals, from its founding in 1987 to 1997.<ref>[http://www.flgov.com/meet-governor-scott/ ''Office of the Governor of Florida'', "Meet Governor Scott," accessed August 17, 2011.]</ref>

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Rick Scott was born in Illinois, near Bloomington. He grew up in Kansas City, Missouri where his parents worked as a truck driver and a secretary for J.C. Penny. After high school, Rick spent one year in community college before deciding to join the U.S. Navy.

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Scott is eligible for re-election and {{2014is}} seeking a second term as governor in the [[Florida state executive official elections, 2014|2014 elections]].<ref name=gov14>[http://www.centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/articles/category/2014-governor/ ''Sabato's Crystal Ball,'' "2013-2014 Gubernatorial Races," March 4, 2013]</ref> He has repeatedly been rated as the most vulnerable incumbent heading into 2014 gubernatorial election cycle by ''The Washington Post'' and ''Governing''.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/05/24/the-fixs-top-15-gubernatorial-races-3/ ''The Washington Post,'' "The Fix's top 15 gubernatorial races," May 24, 2013]</ref><ref>[http://www.governing.com/blogs/politics/gov-2013-2014-governors-races-vulnerable.html ''Governing Politics,'' "2013-2014 Governor's Races: Who's Vulnerable?," December 11, 2012]</ref> One potential threat to Scott winning re-election is former governor and attorney general [[Charlie Crist]]. Although he has yet to declare, Crist's recent decision to change his party affiliation to [[Democratic|Democrat]] and subsequent hobnobbing with the Democratic Governors Association strongly suggest he is preparing for a comeback bid.<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2013/01/09/charlie-crist-briefly-visits-democratic-governors-association/ ''The Daily Caller,'' "Charlie Crist briefly visits with Democratic Governors Association," January 9, 2013]</ref>

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He served for two and half years, much of that time spent abroad the U.S.S. Glover as a radar technician. Upon leaving the service, Scott attended the University of Missouri and went on to law school in SMU. He began his business career while in college, when he bought and revitalized two doughut shops. After law school he joined Johnson & Swanson in Dallas, Texas; at the time, the firm was the largest in the city.

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An analysis of Republican governors by Nate Silver of the ''New York Times'' in April 2013 ranked Scott as the 20th most conservative governor in the country.<ref> [http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/in-state-governments-signs-of-a-healthier-g-o-p/?smid=tw-share&_r=0 ''New York Times,'' "In State Governments, Signs of a Healthier G.O.P.," April 16, 2013]</ref>

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While a partner at Johnson & Swanson in 1987, Scott formed HCA Acquisition Company specifically to acquire Hospital Corporation of America and secured funding conditional on completing the acquisition. The initial offer was declined by HCA and ultimately withdrawn.

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==Biography==

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The next year, he formed Columbia Hospital Corporation and successfully acquired several Dallas area hospitals. Beginning in 1992, Scott and his partners bought a hospital a year for four years, including HCA, his former target. By 1997, Columbia/HCA was the largest healthcare provider on the glove, with annual revenues exceeding $23 billion.

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Scott was born in Illinois, near Bloomington. He grew up in Kansas City, Missouri where his parents worked as a truck driver and a secretary for J.C. Penny. After high school, Scott spent one year in community college before deciding to join the U.S. Navy.<ref name="bio"/>

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But by then, an investigation begun by the ''New York Times'' had caught the eye of the federal government. The federal investigation uncovered evidence of fraud and the company ultimately paid $1.7 billion in fines. Rick Scott's departure from the company was part of the arrangement to avoid criminal charges. Scott relocated to Naples, Florida and founded Richard L. Scott Investments. Starting in 1998, the firm acquired numerous targets.

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He served for two and half years, much of that time spent abroad the U.S.S. Glover as a radar technician. Upon leaving the service, Scott attended the University of Missouri and went on to law school in SMU. He began his business career while in college, when he bought and revitalized two doughnut shops. After law school he joined Johnson & Swanson in Dallas, Texas; at the time, the firm was the largest in the city.<ref name="bio"/>

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Rick Scott joined the gubernatorial race and April and survived a brutal primary to pull off an upset win in the primary.

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While a partner at Johnson & Swanson in 1987, Scott formed HCA Acquisition Company specifically to acquire [[Hospital Corporation of America]] and secured funding conditional on completing the acquisition. The initial offer was declined by HCA and ultimately withdrawn.

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Rick Scott, his wife Ann, and their three children live in Naples, Florida. He and Ann have been married since 1972; the two met in high school.

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The next year, he formed Columbia Hospital Corporation and successfully acquired several Dallas area hospitals. Beginning in 1992, Scott and his partners bought a hospital a year for four years, including HCA, his former target. By 1997, Columbia/HCA was the largest healthcare provider on the glove, with annual revenues exceeding $23 billion.

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But by then, an investigation begun by the ''New York Times'' had caught the eye of the federal government. The federal investigation uncovered evidence of fraud and the company ultimately paid $1.7 billion in fines. Scott's departure from the company was part of the arrangement to avoid criminal charges. Scott relocated to Naples, Florida and founded Richard L. Scott Investments. Starting in 1998, the firm acquired numerous targets.

===Education===

===Education===

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Line 82:

* University of Missouri, Kansas City

* University of Missouri, Kansas City

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===Affiliations===

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==Political career==

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=== Governor of Florida (2011-Present)===

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Scott was elected [[Governor of Florida]] in 2010 on a ticket with [[Jennifer Carroll]]. His term ends January 6, 2015.

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* Founder, Conservatives for Patients Rights (CPR)

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====Issues====

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=====Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")=====

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On February 20, 2013, Scott joined the growing brood of reluctant Republican governors to declare his support for Medicaid expansion as outlined under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as "Obamacare."<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/21/us/in-reversal-florida-says-it-will-expand-medicaid-program.html?_r=0 ''The New York Times,'' "In Reversal, Florida to Take Health Law’s Medicaid Expansion," February 20, 2013]</ref> The controversial federal health care reform bill was passed in March 2010 to the dismay of many Republican elected officials, Scott included, whose disapproval crystallized into a legal effort to have the law overturned by the Supreme Court. The challenge was led by Scott's executive branch colleague, [[Attorney General of Florida|Florida Attorney General]] [[Pam Bondi]]. When the Court ultimately upheld Obamacare on June 28, 2012, Scott expressed his commitment to shun optional provisions such as expanding Florida's Medicaid rolls. But the prospect of having to put 3.5 million Florida patients into managed care plans under a federal action waiver convinced him to agree to a three year trial period for expansion, during which the federal government can absorb the costs of adding 1 million low-income Florida residents to the state's Medicaid rolls. "Three years is a reasonable period to judge just how well the expansion is working and to explore further reforms to improve cost, quality and access in health care -- both in the public and private markets."<ref name=expand>[http://www.governing.com/news/state/mct-rick-scott-accepts-medicaid-expansion.html ''Governing,'' "Florida GOP Gov. Scott Endorses Medicaid Expansion," February 21, 2013]</ref>

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Scott's appeal to the Republican-dominated Florida legislature to consent to a three year trial expansion pointed to the estimated $26 billion federal dollars Florida could receive in the next 10 years under the expansion, as well as the compassion behind broadening eligibility requirements in order to provide care to a portion Florida's 4 million uninsured residents. Reversing his position on the expansion "is not a white flag of surrender to government-run health care," Scott insisted.<ref name=expand/>

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=====Job creation ranking=====

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{{Govs by job creation ranking 2013|Name=Scott|Number=12}}

==Elections==

==Elections==

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===2014===

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:: ''See also: [[Florida gubernatorial election, 2014]]''

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Scott {{2014isrunning}} for re-election in 2014.<ref>[http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/news/article.html/content/news/articles/bn9/2012/7/16/a_year_away_gov_scot.html ''Bay News,'' "A year away, Gov. Scott, Dems prep for next governor's race," July 16, 2012]</ref> A report released by ''Governing'' in December 2012 named Scott as one of five governors considered vulnerable to losing re-election in 2014.<ref>[http://www.governing.com/blogs/politics/gov-2013-2014-governors-races-vulnerable.html ''Governing Politics,'' "2013-2014 Governor's Races: Who's Vulnerable?," December 11, 2012]</ref>

Scott defeated [[Bill McCollum]] and Mike McAllister in the August 24 primary, winning with 46.41% of the vote.

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Scott won election as [[Governor of Florida]] in 2010. He defeated [[Bill McCollum]] and Mike McAllister in the August 24 primary, winning with 46.41% of the vote.

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Scott faced [[Democrat]] [[Alex Sink]] in the general election on [[November 2, 2010 election results|November 2, 2010]], winning by just over 1%.

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Scott faced [[Democrat]] [[Alex Sink]] in the general election on [[November 2, 2010 election results|November 2, 2010]], winning by just over 1%.<ref>[http://election.dos.state.fl.us/elections/resultsarchive/Index.asp?ElectionDate=11/2/2010 ''Florida Division of Elections'', "Governor and Lieutenant Governor: General Election", accessed November 8, 2010, November 29, 2010, and December 21, 2010]</ref>

Before becoming governor, Scott ran Solantic Corporation, a network of Florida urgent care centers, which he co-founded in 2001. From 1997 to 2001, he owned a controlling share in America's Health Network, a media company later known as Discovery Health. He headed Columbia Hospital Corporation, a conglomeration of 340 hospitals, from its founding in 1987 to 1997.[2]

Scott is eligible for re-election and was seeking a second term as governor in the 2014 elections.[3] He has repeatedly been rated as the most vulnerable incumbent heading into 2014 gubernatorial election cycle by The Washington Post and Governing.[4][5] One potential threat to Scott winning re-election is former governor and attorney general Charlie Crist. Although he has yet to declare, Crist's recent decision to change his party affiliation to Democrat and subsequent hobnobbing with the Democratic Governors Association strongly suggest he is preparing for a comeback bid.[6]

An analysis of Republican governors by Nate Silver of the New York Times in April 2013 ranked Scott as the 20th most conservative governor in the country.[7]

Biography

Scott was born in Illinois, near Bloomington. He grew up in Kansas City, Missouri where his parents worked as a truck driver and a secretary for J.C. Penny. After high school, Scott spent one year in community college before deciding to join the U.S. Navy.[1]

He served for two and half years, much of that time spent abroad the U.S.S. Glover as a radar technician. Upon leaving the service, Scott attended the University of Missouri and went on to law school in SMU. He began his business career while in college, when he bought and revitalized two doughnut shops. After law school he joined Johnson & Swanson in Dallas, Texas; at the time, the firm was the largest in the city.[1]

While a partner at Johnson & Swanson in 1987, Scott formed HCA Acquisition Company specifically to acquire Hospital Corporation of America and secured funding conditional on completing the acquisition. The initial offer was declined by HCA and ultimately withdrawn.

The next year, he formed Columbia Hospital Corporation and successfully acquired several Dallas area hospitals. Beginning in 1992, Scott and his partners bought a hospital a year for four years, including HCA, his former target. By 1997, Columbia/HCA was the largest healthcare provider on the glove, with annual revenues exceeding $23 billion.

But by then, an investigation begun by the New York Times had caught the eye of the federal government. The federal investigation uncovered evidence of fraud and the company ultimately paid $1.7 billion in fines. Scott's departure from the company was part of the arrangement to avoid criminal charges. Scott relocated to Naples, Florida and founded Richard L. Scott Investments. Starting in 1998, the firm acquired numerous targets.

Education

Southern Methodist University, J.D.

University of Missouri, Kansas City

Political career

Governor of Florida (2011-Present)

Issues

Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")

On February 20, 2013, Scott joined the growing brood of reluctant Republican governors to declare his support for Medicaid expansion as outlined under the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as "Obamacare."[8] The controversial federal health care reform bill was passed in March 2010 to the dismay of many Republican elected officials, Scott included, whose disapproval crystallized into a legal effort to have the law overturned by the Supreme Court. The challenge was led by Scott's executive branch colleague, Florida Attorney GeneralPam Bondi. When the Court ultimately upheld Obamacare on June 28, 2012, Scott expressed his commitment to shun optional provisions such as expanding Florida's Medicaid rolls. But the prospect of having to put 3.5 million Florida patients into managed care plans under a federal action waiver convinced him to agree to a three year trial period for expansion, during which the federal government can absorb the costs of adding 1 million low-income Florida residents to the state's Medicaid rolls. "Three years is a reasonable period to judge just how well the expansion is working and to explore further reforms to improve cost, quality and access in health care -- both in the public and private markets."[9]

Scott's appeal to the Republican-dominated Florida legislature to consent to a three year trial expansion pointed to the estimated $26 billion federal dollars Florida could receive in the next 10 years under the expansion, as well as the compassion behind broadening eligibility requirements in order to provide care to a portion Florida's 4 million uninsured residents. Reversing his position on the expansion "is not a white flag of surrender to government-run health care," Scott insisted.[9]

Job creation ranking

In a June 2013 analysis by The Business Journals which ranked 45 of the country's 50 governors by their job creation record, Scott was ranked number 12. The five governors omitted from the analysis all assumed office in 2013. The ranking was based on a comparison of the annual private sector growth rate in all 50 states using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.[10][11]

Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Scott is available dating back to 2010. Based on available campaign finance records, Scott raised a total of $67,488,953 during that time period. This information was last updated on July 8, 2013.[15]

Rick Scott's Campaign Contribution History

Year

Office

Result

Contributions

2012

Governor of Florida

$0

2010

Governor of Florida

$67,488,953

Grand Total Raised

$67,488,953

2010

Ballotpedia collects information on campaign donors for each year in which a candidate or incumbent is running for election. The following table offers a breakdown of Rick Scott & Jennifer Carroll's donors each year.[16] Click [show] for more information.